Cumulative-voting mechanism for voting-machines.



W. J-. LAUSTERER. GUMULATIVE VOTING MBGHANISM PoR VOTING MAGHINBS.

, APPLICATION AFILED `AUG. 13, 19'08 4 1,072,962, Patent-,ea sept. 9,1913.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

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REPRESENTATIVES /V GENERAL 'AASSE/WBLV :van :vr/fs :vor: Ivan: wn l5 vars: s van.

Tu s ER TWP/VEB 5 ver: s l van J lnozwtofa W. J. LAUSTERBR. Y A GUMULATIVE VOTING MECHANISMIOR VOTING MACHINES. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 13, 1908.

1,072,962. Patented. sept. 9, 1913 v witnesses mkv-fer" 'a1-EUM- K DMW( wwwa@ ver. "Il I I I p W. J. LAUSTERER. GUMULATIVE VOTING MECHANISM POR VGTING'MAGHINBS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.13. 190B.v

Patented slept.9,1913

` 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.V

'INVENTOR WITNESSES A MTED STATES. filElI? OFFICE. 7

WiLLIAM J. LAUs'rnRniz, on JAMiis'roWN, NEW YORK, AssiGNon' To EMPIRE voriiIG MACHINE COMPANY, OF ROCHESTER AND JAMESTQWN; NEW YORK.,

.rioN on YORK.

CUMULATIVEIOTING MECHANISM FOR V 0'I ING-1VIACHINES Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 9, 1913.

whom it may concern?. y

TQ all i A Be it known that I, WiLLiM J. LAUS- Tenna, a citizen of thenited States, .residing at Jamestown, in the county of Chauf tauqua and .State of New "York,

` Wheiie cumulative voting is practised, as is thec'ase fory example in the State ofv Illinois in the eiection of members in the general as- 'sembly thereof.

In the State of Iliinois the constitution at present provides that. three representatives shall be elected to the general assembly from each senatorial district, and that in the election of thekrepresentatives, which occurs every tivo years, each qnaliiicd'v voter may castas 'many'votes for one candidate as there are xepresentatives to be elected, or may dis- 'tribute the same or 'equal parts thereof among the candidates as he shall see fit,

and the three candidates highest in votes shall bedec'lared elected. Thus, the `candidates Smith, Brown and Jonesiiiaybe nomileading parties to I nated by `one party. The voter may at his option cast threevvotes for Smith aione, two votes for vSmith ,and one vote .for Brown, one land a half votes for Smithand Brown each, or onel vote apiecefor each Smith, Brown and Jones, or may cumulate them on any one other candidate or combination of candidates that he may see lfit. It is the practiceof .the political parties that State,

"Where the' senatorial districtcontains but a small majority for Aeither party, 4for the tvvo nominate two candidates only, so .that the voterin -voti-n a straight have in-` vented certain new and useful Improve-v ticket .may count ,one and .a .hat votes for' each o f these candidates, although he may at his option. vote otherwise, as above .in-- dicated. In other instances the party nomihates but ,a single `1 candidate, -s'o that from the voter' Who votes a straight .ticket such candidate will Areceive three votes, While in other cases each or all the'paities will sator therefor.

nominate tivo candidates for this `oilice, but in any case the vvoter is entitled to andmust be permitted 'to bunch or distribute his vote l,

'to the extent above indicated.

In order 'to arrange the machine to permit;

voters to-vote in al'l the Ways that they are entitled to vote, I Ahave arrangedthe names of the candidates on the keyboard of the machine in a special' Way repeating them4 asYV vmay'be necessary and specially interlocking the keys belonging to such candidatca and disconnecting a portion ofthe vkeys from the straight ticket voting mechanism so as to allow the keys to be voted in Waysas to secure all the rights above described.

This 'invention is also capable of use for .other purposes, and it consists in certain imprvements and combi-nations of partshereinafter .fully "described, the. novel .features being pointed out-'inthe claimsl at the end of'ithis specification'.

In the accompanying drawings Figure l is a front elevationof that portion ofthe keyboard oft-he machine on Which theassembly ticket is placed in an Illinois election. Fig. 2 is a pian View of the interlocking chan-nel showing the arrangement of grouping pins and compensators therein as tion for the ticket asfshown in Fig. l. Fig.

violi-ld be necessary accordingto niy inven- 3 is an elevation of the cumulative vote lock? out as viewed from the' front of themiachinel in Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation takeny transvcrselytlirough all of the intern locking mechanism of the assembly group.

Fig.v 5 is a detail View in perspective of one of the-'plates for locking the sub-groups. Fig. 6 is a detaii in perspective of a pair of the interlocking Wedges and la compenindividual pointers and the straight ticket mechanism, 'by which connections an ofiice line of keys can be connected to or disconnected from the party levers. `Fig. 9 is a cross section of the line 9*, 92. in Fig. `8.

Fig. 10 is a detail` in `perspective of the connections at the bottom .of one of the .oiiice lines in Fig. 8. Fig. lil is a detail. show- Fig. 7 is a detail in per 410i ing peal connection 'between the individual pointers and the party lever by which' they may be driven. Fig. 12 is a detail of the. compensator.

1n the accompanying drawings, like reference numerals refer to like parts.

1n Fig. lof the drawings I have shown the assembly ticket as it may occur in an Illinois election, arranged -on the'machine in the manner that may bevnecessary for thepurpose of permitting the Voter to vote according to his rights as above set forth.

The first oiiice" line of the group in thisl governor, secretary of state, etc. .All of these olices come in a sequence that is prescribed by law. Some of these loffices occur on the'ticket on successive elections more fre- A qnently than others and because of this the position of the assembly ticket on the machine may Vary from one election to another.'

As shown in Fig. 1 the seventh oiiice line contains the straight ticket vote, so to speak; that is, that part of the vote that will be cast bythe operation of the party levers7 and here it may be observed that the -keys in the seventh office line in this Vinstance are connected up soas tov be operated by their respective party levers While the-keys in the remaining office linesY of the assembly'group are disconnected from their vparty levers so as not to'be "operated or affected thereby. This will be more fully explained later on. As will be noticed in Fig. 1 in the rst party row infthe seventh office line, the names of tWo candidates are given and the ballot indicates that a vote cast by the key 7A will count as one anda half Votes for each of such candidates, that is to say, if the counter TA stands at the beginning of the election at 000, and at the end ofthe election it shows 202, the election olicers will credit to eachY of these candidates 303 votes, the correct number of'votes for each candidate being ascertained by multiplying the record of the counters by the facto'r shown on the ballot vso label, Which in this canse is 1.1.

At 7B three'candidates7 names are shown on the ballot label, and if the counterB at the end of the election shows 202, then 202 will be credited to each of these three candidates by the election oiiicers, the record of the counter i'n that case being multiplied by the factor, which for each of these candidates is 1.

The key 7C belongs to but one candidate printed on the ballot label thereunder, and

a vote given by the key 7C will in that-case indicate three votes for that one candidate,

' so that at the end of the election if the counter 7C shows 202 votes, the correct vote to be credited bythe election officers will be 606 y It will be understood that there of these names willappear upon the ballot V but once, and ordinarily the ballot will be printed with the proper factor in connection with each name,` as. designated by' the party convention in the number of nominations that it makes' for that oliice, so that4 the election oiiicers in the absence of other marks on the ballot will' count 'a straightv ticket Vote forv that 1party .accordingly for that office.

If the voter wishes to vote a scratch ticket when using a paper ballot, he can put such pencil marks thereon asmay be necessary to properly indicate his choice, or the distribution .of his votes among the various candidates, and the ballot will be counted accordingly. Such -a marking cn the machine, however, is not possible for each voter, because no separate`-record of each'mansballot is kept to be audited-later by the election officers, so that. it is necessary that the machine 'must anticipate the wants of all of the voters and must pro-` ift vide in advance the mechanical facilities whereby each man may exercise the choice which the law allows to him. Accordingly,' twelve additional 'oiiice lines of keys are used on the machine to permit the voter to vote combinations other than that provided for on the straight ticket -votel Six ottice lines are used to permit the voter to vote one vote for each candidate, 'and as shown in oiiice lines from 8 to 13 inclusive, each -of the names that appearsin the seventh oilice line appears twice on the same party row in the oiiice lines 8 to 13 inclusive, and in connection with leach of such names the ballot label indicates one Vote, and 'in that part of the group the voter can vote one or two votes for any one candidate, and as will be seenlater on, he can cast three votes therein aswell for two or three candidates in all. Otiice .lines 14, 15, and 16 `are de- ,voted to another subgroup, in which subgroup the names that appear on the seventh ofiice line appear but once, and in this subgroup the ballot label indicatesA one and one-half votes for each name. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th oiice lines each of the names on theseventh oilice line appears again but once, each name in a separate ballot space, as is 'true of all of the sub-groups except that lon the seventh oilice line, and in this sub-group each ballot" label indicates three votes for its candidate.

CRv

793,666. Reference Anumeral 1 refers to' these keys. To each of these keys is con-l l eluded. These rollers are carried'by the.i nterlocking channel 2. 1

vcredited to each candid-ate,

In' determining the vote rately to the result the machine cannot be voted on by any voters, soas to make it record va vote that will be in excess. of the vote 'which the voter is entitled ,by law to cast.

Having thus described in a general way what the result is that must be secured, will 'new describe the mechanisml by which this result is secured.

' In 'Fig'. 1 I have shown a partial eleva- 4tion of the keyboard of the machine in cluding four party rows of keys extending from ofticedlnef to '19 inclusive. These keys are regularly interlocked inthe manner described' in my prior Patent No.

nected an interlocking strap 6, which in; terlocking strap passes between' interlock-l ing rol'lers\ 33, which interlocking rollers are recessed so that between consecutive rollers a pair of interlocking. straps is in- As shown in Fig-2, grouping pins l, 4, are shown holding-.the pin rollers in place, said pins marking the ends of the 'four sub,

" groups intowhich the oilice lines '7 to 111 inclusive are divided, there beingliveof these' 'grouping pins in all "for the assembly group.

' The first office line, or sub-group, is referred ln the. sub-group X2 three keys can `be voted. In the. sub-group X one to as X1 and embraces the office lineV No. 7. Thesecond of these sub-groups is referred to as X2 and embraces oice lines 8 to 1 3 inclusive. The third of these sub-groups is referred to as X3 and embraces o ilice lines 14, 15, and 16. The fourth of these' subgroups is referredA texas X4, and embraces oflice liiies 17, 18, and 19. An'ins ection of the interlock shownv at sub-group 1 in Fig.

2 shows that butone wedge can be pulled into voted position; accordingly, 'on the seventh oflice line but one key can be voted.

e, voted. In thesub-group X3 two keys can key can be voted, the interlock in Fig. 2 being shown in each group with the corresponding numberof open spaces into which the `correct 'number of wedgesl can be pulled,

and no more. In' the sub-group Xzin Fig. 2 three compensators 5 are shown. In the above described, so that f thereon.

'sub-groupy X4: but' onez'com'pensator 5 'is shown, and the sub-group X'4 two c'om-v pensators' -5 are shown. These compensators take up space that might otherwise vbe occupiedv by' Wed-ges, number of keys that can be voted. in each sub-group is limited tothe proper number. Se far as anything shown in Figs. 1 or 2'is concerned, one key can be voted in subgroup'. X1, `three keys in sub-group X2, two .7D

.keys in sub-groupI X8, and one key in subgroup X4, and all of .these .can be in voted. position at the same time', and if this were possible inthe general operation of the matimes as many votes as he is entitled to cast,

'which would be vmanifestly improper, and

additional mechanism must be provided to limit each voter vtoftlf-ie proper'number, and I' this mechanism I am now about to.' describe.

' As shown in Fig, 4; eachfof the interlocking straps 6 is providedwith a shoulder 7 `Mounted on the' bottom of the machine at suitableintervals are the standards 8, 8;` supported by these standards. are the rods 9, which supports the boosting bar in the machine,an`d which does not conlstituteany necessary part of'my present in vention, 'andthe-rods l0 and 11 by which and-by their use the 1, D

' chine., it would allow a voter to cast f our 80 the cumulative vote lockout is supported,

which lockout' I will presently describe. These rods 9, 10, and 11 extend throughout the entire length of the machine, although` if the location of the assembly group is known with suihcient deliniteness it may not be necessaryV forthe rods 10 and -11 to extend but; part' way through the machine.l The rods 10 and 11 are fastened to the standard 8, 8, by means of pins 12, which pass through the rods 10 and 11 but l'eavethe` cylindrical surface of the rods unbroken 'o n onev side, so as not to interfere with the sliding of the cumulative lockout thereon, i

as it may-be necessary to shift its position from time to time.'

As shown vin Fig. 3 the cumulative lock.-

out consistsI of a separate structure having 1 the brackets 13, 13, therein connectedby the tie-rod I4 near the bottom, and the interlocking channel 1.5 near the top. Sup ported in these brackets 13-'13 is the sh .ft 16, which extends 'thro-ughthe whole length of the structure, and has its bearings in the brackets 13. On this shaft at suitable inf.

tervals are keyed the cams 17, 17,' sothat the shaft and all ofv its cams will rotatetogether. At the top of these brackets 13-13 is mounted the shaft19, o'n which is pivo ted a -plate 2() having the widthof one oflice line, *sixofiicc lines, plate 22 having the Width of ,three oliice lines, and the plate 23 having the-width of three office lines. The plates 20, 21',

in sub-groups X1, X2, X3, and X4 respecplate 21 having the width -of 12 5 22, and 23 cordinate With the parts t tively; These platesare mounted to independentlyl rotate on lthe shaft 19, which shaft is common to all of .said plates. Each of these plates has-connected thereto by a chain or other suitable connection 30,-one or more, cams 17 mounted on the shaft 16 below it, in consequence of which when: any one of these' plates and its cams ,17 are lifted, the rock shaft 16 is rotatedthereby,

23 is a pin2-4l, on which is pivoted pendants- 25.` Each-of these pendants has thereon about midway of its lengthl an interlocking wedge-.26, and a little Abelow the wedge 26 and at right angles thereto is another interlocking wedge `27. The interlocking wedge 26 coperates `with the interlocking blocks 28 in the channel 15. rfhe displacement of this wedge on the pendant 25 connected to the plate 2O is double that of any of the other pendants, so that the displacement of the one pendant connected with plate 20 will equal the displacement of thel two pendants connected to each of the other plates 21, 22, and 23. At the bottom` of each of ythese pendants is carried the interlockin roller 29, which interlocking roller 29 is intended to and does coperate .with

. the cam surface 17 under certain conditions and for `particular purposes thatv will now be described.

. When, for example, the plate 21 is lifted,

itwill raise the two c anis 17 connected therewith through the connections 30-30. It

A will also. raise the interlocking rollers 29, 45

whicihfare .connected thereto so that ne interlockwillpccur between the'rollers 29 attachedgtofthe plate and-thc cani 17 with which i' they `are normally in engagement. The -canis;.v=;l7,vhowever, are all keyed to the shaft 1.6,'a1nd when the cams of any one plate -aijefliftedit causes the lifting of the cams of theother plates as well, but it does not cause the lifting of the other plates as well, for -as is shown iii-Fig. 4 the connec-V tion BOhas a sliding engagement with the plate with-which it is'connected, sothat it can risea limit-ed distance independent thereof. As above described, it will. be seen thatA there are seven*l cams keyed on this shaft' 16, all of which will rock with it when any lone-or two of the Vcams are lifted, but as lthese cams may be raised a limited distance without disturbing` the plates with which they vare connected, it Will be seen that the raising of one of the plates a disfl tance sufficient to permit vthe voting of the keys controlled thereby will not in'any way cause the raising of the others. locking channel 15 with the blocks 2S therein is provided to prevent the lifting of more than one of these plates at a time. wedges26 are so arranged with reference to the blocks28 that when one of the plates is liftediall of the available room in the inter- ,locking channel 15 is taken up, so that the other plates may not be lifted. Infthis way the lifting of more than one plate at a time is prevented.' It has been found on trial that if the interlocking channel 15v with its blocks A28 is alone depended on to interlock the plates 20, 21, 22, `and 23, that such plates will not return freely when the machine is vreset, but will stick if the voter has attempted to lift two of those plates. This is due tothe friction of .the interlocking wedges 26 with the interlocking blocks 28 of the channel 15. lThis friction may be developed if the voterY first votes keys in one of the sub-groups, and then tries to force f to voted position a key in another of the sub-groups. This friction The inter- The could be overcome by positively releasing the blocks on the resetting of the machine or by positively resetting the plates, but

vthe cams 17 on the interlocking rollers 29 are provided so that-this, release 'may be depended upon to effect itself by gravity, so

sticking under as to prevent the parts from any circumstances.

1 When one ofthe plates hasbeen raised the `interlocking blocks 28 have been closed inaround the pendants 25, .so as to prevent any movement ofthem along the channel 15.; The cains. 17 have been raised so as to swing outwardly `all of the`pendantsv 25 that are attached to the plates that have not been raised. In this position the interlocking wedges 27 of the pendants 25 that have not been raised arejust .about-to engage with the lower edge of the interlocking channel 15 and in the upward movement of any of these plates after the cams 17 have been raised the wedges 27 will contact'with the interlocking channel 15 before the wedges 26 can contact with the interlocking blocks 28, thus causingthe jam or friction on the pendants 25 to come between the wedges 27 and the interlocking channel, and.

not'between the wedges 26 and the blocks 28. For the purpose of this interlock the cams 17 and the rollers 29 take the place of the other side of tha-interlocking channel.

Thewedges 26' and l27 are so positioned that when thev pendants 25 are held out by the cai-ns 17 pressing against the rollers 29,j the wedge 27 will engage with Athe channel before the wedge 26 can engage with the blocks. The lower end of the pendant 25 has the roller 29 thereon bearing'against the cjam surface v1.7 oven-which it rolls'freely,

-so thatI the cams-17 can travel past the roller 29' with' little orl no friction,V and while the interlocking parts may tend to 4stickat the interlocking channel, they will be promptly released as soon as the cam- 17 hasjpassed the interlocking roller, for then -the interlockinglparts can swing free 'again lat the interlockin channel. lThe-interlock ing wedges 26 o the plate tliat' has been raised cannothbe jammed against ythe interlocking blocks 28 by 'any attempt to raise either of the vother plates, because the attempt to raise suchI other plateswill in every case cause the jam toy come locally between the wedges 27 ofl their pendants 25, andthe side of `the interlocking channel. Neither.

can the interlockingwedges 27y of the plate that has been raised be jammed against the interlocking channel, because it has been lifted high enough so that the' rollers 29A thereon `will he above the cams 17, and will net .be',operated thereby 'and because the -openings'in the channel arel wider Aat'such points than the wedges27 attheir widest parts. This jam' or. friction between the wedges 27 andthe' channel occurs before the jam can occur with the wedge, so that no be made of a single'piece of metalwith a T- stress will befa'pplied to the interlocking blocvks 28 thereby. To' assist-the return of the shaft 16 with the 'cams .17-thereon, place on the said shaft a torsion spring 31,A

as-*to pu-llthe camsl downand release lthe rollers 29 and the interlocking wedges 27.- The interlocking'channel 'in this'icase may shaped groovecut therein; At? those places where' the pendants .215,t pass through-'the' .channel 15, I'cut holes through the bottom of the channel offsufficient size tolallowjsaid pendants tdtravel iipor down orfsideways .in .either direction', as farA as may be lneces- `Sary to Asecure the proper working of the y 'partsf It is not necessary thatthe. interlockingv channel 15 have an opening ruik nino' clear through'the top and bottom of it, as the interlocking pendants are f ew in numf ber compared to the length ofthe channel.

and have a veryv limited movement.. j .A A description 'of the'V operatifn f of this cumulativeV vote .lockout inI the .ordinary vprocess of voting willn'ow be given.

ReferringV to Figs, '4 and 5, it will be seenA that when any one `of the interlocking straps the said strap will, through its lug`, oi4 shouldei-7, raise the plate 2,0, 21, 22, or 23,-`that may be engaged therewith', This plate will in; turn interlock with the other,A plates in the manner above described, sorthat neither of thev other plates can be raised, andl'this.

will inffturnhold down thefinterlocking straps andkeys that enga e withnsuch other plates. The.engagement i'etweerrthe plates and` their respective straps willbe Aunderstood by *comparing Figs. 2 and 3. The.

votingv devices of y the assembled group are divided into four hub-groups by the 'grouping pins 4, 4, and by means of the plates 20,

21, 22, and 23, When thevoter has started to vote in one of these sub-groups, h e is p revented from voting in any of the other subgroups. If he has made a mistake by starting in the wrong sub-group, the resetting of the voted keys -in that sub-group will restore the patte, 20, 21, 22, or 23 to its initial position, thus permitting the voter to start over. again in another group, but it is ap- `parent 'that with this arrangement of the parts, that the voterwill not find it possible to have keys voted in two sub-groups at the same time.-

In different elections 'it may be necessary i to connect lthis attachment-'to diii'erent office lineson the machine. Fig. 1 shows the assembly group extending from the seventh A oflice line to the nineteenth inclusive. It might, however, in. another election begin with the fifteenth office line and extend tov the twenty-seventh. -On this account I have made this lockout adjustable so as to connect it with those oiicali-nes Iwhere .the assembly ticketmay happen to come on the machine. As shown lin Fig.' .4 this attachment has a -sliding engagement with the urodslOv and 11, and this attachment may be s vclamped-.to such rods in anyvposition by mearisof the clamps32, which have a fri'ctional engagement with 'the rods l0 and 11, 'i

and 'which 'are positively fastened Ato the brackets 13 by means of the screw 33. By

-these connections the attachment canmbe readily lfastened in any position and moved from one position to another. The interlocking channel 2.-2 and its rollers is made `,interchangeable `throughout the whole machine, so that single and multicandidate groups can be formed at any place. Oneach side of each of the plates 20, 21, 22,l and 23 I provide theiingers 34,v which fingers pass between and separate the end interlocking straps' G of the sub-groups, so that. said interlocking straps-6 will vbe positively' held in'v engagement -with the .plates '20, 21,22., and 23belongin'g to that particu* larsiib-group, so that such interlocking straps cannotbccome accidentally engaged i `with the plate belonging *to another' subgro-up. These fingers 34 are each provided i vting below. the plate on' which `they ariel',

' mounted, but which does not interfere with 'with' a'lug which prevents them from gettheir wedges which are inclosed between two consecutive rollers 3.

When the assembly group is voted on the Amachine in the manner above described, it

is necessary to havetin each party line the key of the rst oiiice line of the group connected to its straight ticket voting mechanism, while the keys of the other oiiice lines of the lgroup must be `disconnected from their 4straight ticket voting mechanisms so as not tobe operated thereby, or

so that such keys in turn will not interfere with the operation of the straight ticket vvotingv mechanism. The construction and operation of the parts by which this result is ,secured are shown in Figs., 8 to 11 inclusive, andv Ithese'parts I am now about to describe.

`In Fig. 8 the crank 40 of the straight ticket key is shown in dotted'lines. Wheny the party lever is operated the crank 40 will move the connecting link 41 andl pull to the right the straight ticket bar 42. On this straight ticket bar is pivoted a series 'of latches 43, one latch at each othce line. This latch can be raised and lwhenin raised position it will engage` with the lu`g 44 on the keyl 1, When the straight ticket bar moves forward, or it can be lowered, in which case it will not engage vwith the lug 44 and will not operate the key 1 when the-straight' ticket bar is operated. All of these' latches 43 of one ofticeline are connected to a slide 47. This slide 47 has slots 45 cut therein at suitable intervals, with which slot 45 engages studs 46 carried on the latches 43.

AEach of these slots are somewhat longer than the travel of the' straight ticket bar 42 plus the diameter of one of the studs 46. By raising the slide 47 all of the-latches 43 of that oiiice line will be thrown into position to engage with their respective keys and to4 move 4them to voted position when their straight ticket bars are operated, and

when the slides 47 are lowered the latches 43 will not engage with their respective e keys and will not move them, and if the-keys are locked against movement for any reason, as for example, by the plates 21, 22,'.

and 23, the operation of the straightv ticket keys will not be interfered with. Rei'erring i Ato Figs. 2 .and 3 it will be seen that, of the six oflice lines of keys connected to plate 21 `but three keys can be voted, and that in the Because of the and 23 must be disconnected, leaving the vkeys of the first office line of the lgroup to be operated by the straight ticket mechanism.

The slides 47 are provided at the lower end witha link 48 pivoted on a stud 49, whichA -link at its lower end is recessed at 50 to engage with the bar .51; in this barv are two holes 53 and 54 for each of these links. The link also carries therein the spring pressed pin 55 by which it canbe raised o-r lowered, which pin engages with, the hole or 54 so as to hold the slide 47 in its up or down position. j

It will thus lbe seen that with the mechanism above described I have provided a simple and eiective construction by which the provision is made -i'or voting straight .and

4split. votes in the assembly group so as to accommodate all voters in the exercise of their voting privilege in any manner. that they may. select so long as they are within their legal rights' and without interfering with the use of the balancey of the machine for the ordinary purposes of the election.

Having thus described my invention, what f claim as new and patentable is as z folowszlQThe combination in a voting' machinev of' a 4group of keys varranged in three or lmore sub-groups, an interlock between the other, interlocking rdevices controlling the eov operation of said wings, each of said wings i engagingwith one of the sub-groups of vot ing devices, an interlock in each sub-group to limit'the number of keys operable therein.

2. The combination 1n a voting machine of a plurality of keys arranged in a series of parallel office line, an interlocking mechanism dividing said keys into subgroups and limiting the number of keys that `can be operated in each sub-group,`a series of pivoted plates suitably interlocked, one for each subgroup of keys and in engagement therewith,

whereby'the operation of the iirst key in any subgroup will move thel plate of said subgroup to its interlocked position, saidplate serving to lock against operation the other plates and the keys controlled thereby, said plates being mounted on a single shaft and being movable therewith longitudinally to engage dii'erent sets of-voting devices.

3. The combination in a"voting machine 'of interlocking-straps each having a lug thereon, said straps being divided into groups, a serles of p1voted plates engaging with said lugs, one.- for' each group, and

eaelrplate being supported so as to be lifted when any interlocking strap in its .group is operated, and means to prevent the lifting ofthe remaining plates When any one of them has been lifted.

4. The combination in a vot-ing machine' y of interlocking straps, each lstrap having a lug thereon, said straps being` divided into groups, a shaft extending parallel to said lifted thereby vvhen any strap in its group.y is operated, means 'to prevent the liftinr of.

the remaining plates' when anyone of them -has been lifted.

5. The. combination in' a voting machine of keys interlockedin a plurality of groups, `means for interlocking each of said groups yagainst all the remaining groups, so as to permit the'voting of keys in any one' of said 'groups and preventxthevoting of keys in the remaining groups, said means being' movably mounted to engage' with groups -of keys formed in any part of the machine.

6. A voting machine interlock comprising a series of. plates pivota'lly mounted on fa singleshaft and interlocke'd to prevent. the lifting of more than one thereof ata time,

` brackets supporting said shaft, sup-ports for said brackets, said'v brackets being mounted on said supports so as to vbe-inovedalong said supports.

7. A voting machine interlock com rising "p 'on a a seriesv of .plates pivotally Amount' single shaft and 4interlockedl to prevent the lifting of more'than .one thereof at a time,

vbracket-s supporting said shaft, supportsufor said brackets, said brackets' being mounted on saidl supports so as totbe moved along.

said supports andi-clamped thereto. Y

8. A voting machine interlockcomprising a series of ,plates pivotally mounted, an interlock therefor comprising wedges and,

blocks A'to prevent the lifting ofA more than one offsaid plates at ,a time, an additional I lockout thereforto-prevent any strain being put on the interlockingfbloeksby the 4attempted operation of plates successively.

A 9. A voting machine interlock comprisinga Vseries of plates pivotally mounted, an 1nter lock therefor comprising Wedges and blocks to prevent the lifting of mo'rethan one of sai -plates at a time, aA lockout therefor, said lockout comprising pendants having en ,.largeinents thereon, an obstruction with which said enlargements can engage, one or more of? said pendants being separately attached to each plate, a shaft having cams thereon connected to all the plates Aand rocked by the lifting of any one of said plates, .said cams engaging With the vpendants .when the shaft 1s rocked, to move said nter pendants` to engage said enlargement-s withI said obstruction to prevent the longitudinal movement of said pendants or the movement` of the plates connected thereto. 10. .A voting machine interlock comprising a series of plates, a cam shaft connected to said plates and operated by. any one of said plates, Aone ormore interlockingWedges connected to each plate, Aan interlock-ing `channel and blocks for said Wedges, one or more ofsaid ivedges'lie'ing moved to interllocking position by the plateconnected 12` A11 interlocking Wedgecomposed of a stem having v'two Wedges placed thereon in series and a-tright angles to each other and a channel having blocks therein with which said zwedgesengage, one of said' Wedges in.- -teilocking-with the channel and the other wedgeinterlocking with the b lock`.' 13. The combination ina Voting machine of interlocking straps each havinga. lug

thereon, said straps being divided into' groups, a pi'voted yplate engaging the lugs of the straps of one group, vsaid plate being suported se as -to be lifted when any strap. of its group is operated, iingers'inounted o n saidA plate and projecting` beyond it to engage thestr'aps of the group and .hold them in'engagement'with the plate. I

. 14:. A .compensator for ya Vvoting;lniichiiie linterlock consisting ofan. L shapedpieee of .metal,.one of itsarms adapted to beengaged with the wedges or blocks. .of -thel ite'rlocking channel, and the' other of its arms-adaptf ed to overhang said channel .auditie-.supported thereby. s j

15. A voting machine interlock consisting .of a channel,vvedges and'blocks, a compen-4 sator therefor. consisting of an. L shaped y i .piece of metal, one lof its arms being adapted` to engage with the Wedges or blocks, andv the other of its arms adapted to. overhang the 'c'liannel and besupported thereby;

16.' Thecombination in 'a voting machine 'of keys arrangedin a plurality ofofliee lines, ockingstrapsconnected to said keys, shoulders on said straps, a frame having a plurality of'vvings thereon, capable between them of engaging' the interlocking straps of frame being adj ustably mounted to be shifted into engagement With different combina-V tions of said interlocking straps.

, 17. The combination in a voting machine 'a plurality of consecutive oflice lines, said` iso' .of keys arranged-in a plurality of oiiice lines, 4 interlocking straps connected to said keys,

- shoulders on said straps, a framefvlriavlng a plurality of Wings thereon, capableTetWeen them of engaging the interlocking. straps of a plurality of consecutive office lin es, said frame being adjustablymounted tQb'e shifted into engagement With different combinations .of said interlocking straps, interlock-v ingdevices between said wings to prevent the operation .of more than one thereof whereby the voting of the key's is correspondingly limited.- v

18. The combination in a voting machine of a key, a party bar movable to operate the key,.a latch pivoted on the party bar and capable of being elevated or depressed, said latch in its elevated position being capable of engagement with the key to operate it on themovement of the bar, said latch inits depressed position being incapable of engagement With the key to operate it on the movement of the-bar and -mea-ns for geach oliice line for -operating all the latchesthereof collectively.

19. "The combination in a voting machine of a key, a party bar movable to operate theV key, a latch pivoted .on the party bar .and capable of'being 'elevated oriy depressed, said latch in its elevated position beingcapable of engagement With the kay to operate it on vthe movement of the bar, said latch in `its depressed position'being incapable of engagement With the key to operate it von the movement of the bar, and means forfpo'sitively holding the latch in either position.'

20. The combination in a voting machine' of a key, a party bar movable tobperate the' key,b a latch pivoted on the party bar and capable of being elevated or depressed, said latch in its elevated position being capable of engagement with the key to operate it on the movement of the bar, said latch in its depressed .position vbeing incapable of engagement with the key to operate itV on the movement of the banand means mounted Non the frame of theumachine independent "of the straight ticket" mechanism for positively holding the latch in either position,

said means being external to the party bar and without interfering With the movement L thereof. l

21. The combination in a voting machine n of keys arranged in parallel party lines and in oiiice rows transverse thereto, a party bar for .operating collectively the keys in aparty row', latches pivoted on said bars one for each key,through which latches the bar operates the keys, said latches being capable of being 1 engaged 'with or disengaged from their respective keys, to operate said keys or leave them idle on the operation of the bar and means for eacholiice line for operating all the latches thereof collectively.

22;The combinationin a, voting machine of keys arranged i'n parallel party lines and in ofiice rows transverse thereto, a partyV bar for operating collectively thel keys in a party row, latches pivoted on said'bars one foreach key, through which latches the bar operates the keys, said latches being capable of being engaged With or-disenga'ged from their respective keys, to operate said keys lor leave them idle on the operation of the bar, a. l

jslide engaged with the latches belonging to all the keys of an oflice line, said slide being movable with the latches to connect or` dis-\ connect all the partyv bars from their respective keys of its office line.

23. The combination in a voting machine of a key, a party bar movable to operate the key,`a latch pivoted on 'the party bar and capable of engagement with" or disen gagement 4from the key, a stud on said'latch, a slide having a slot therein, a stud on the latch engaged With said slot and movable,y

` In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of tvvo Witnesses. A

WILLIAM J. LAUSTERER.

Witnesses:

ALEXANDER B. CARCILINS, ETHEL C. MILLER. 

